Coaster Works

Share.

No engineering degree needed to build a coaster here... even it if looks like it's required.

By IGN Staff

One of the games that nearly destroyed my deteriorating college academic record was Sim City 2000; it got to the point where my dorm mates would call me, "The Mayor." So you're probably wondering about my sanity level; without any visual flashiness or electrifying gameplay, how could a hardcore gamer like myself, sink waist-deep into a city building simulation game? Easy... with an addictive building system, enabling you to design every building, street, pipeline system, and electric grid, creating a city block was like a complex puzzle. One misplaced power line meant the life or death of citizens everywhere. Yes, a simple click of my mouse would decide what block wouldn't have power, what parts of the city would be denied access to city services, and if I would raise taxes even higher to squeeze every last drop out of those peasants! MUWAAHAHAHA! This mix of resource managing, puzzle solving, and power tripping elements is what made the game so addicting. Coaster Works for the Dreamcast is a microcosm of Sim City 2000; instead of managing cities for the benefit of your citizens, the enjoyment of amusement park patrons relies on how well you design your coaster. And in this game, success is measured on how many riders you can make puke (no visual though... drat).

Those who start playing Coaster Works might be a bit intimidated when they begin designing their roller coaster. The game wastes no time, dropping the player in creating a ride for kids. But when you first view the roller coaster designing interface, you might mistake it for an advanced 3D-modeling program. When creating your roller coaster, the screen is split up into four views: top, side, front, and a rail view right behind the coaster. The visuals in these four screens are displayed in vector-like fashion, with vertical, horizontal, and "twist" angle indicators on the side. Unlike roller coaster sims like Rollercoaster Tycoon where the variety of track parts are limited, you have the ability to change the track parts in Coaster Works to any angle allowed by science. This allows for a near infinite number of positions to place your track parts, giving the player an incredible amount of creative freedom. Though it would seem that a mechanical engineering degree would be required to play this game, the tutorial shows you how easy it is to control the different views and designing options.

Once you've got your custom coaster completed, it's time for a test run. Test running your ride puts a camera right behind the front seat, as you get a thrill seeker's view of the action. Also, indicators showing speed, and vertical and horizontal G forces will be measured as the train speeds through the turns. Of course, you won't always build a fully operation roller coaster on your first try, especially if turns and twists are too tight thus launching your ride into the air. But once all the corrections are made after a test run or two, your coaster will be evaluated on the minimum specs in speed, G forces, thrill and safety. Passing the evaluation is a measure in how many people screamed, blacked out, and threw up on the ride... and you want to make people throw up! Once you get the passing grade, you'll be able to move to the next level, giving you more space and options to truly make a "death coaster".

Though the building mechanics make the game interesting, Coaster Works needs some work in a few other areas. Visually, the graphics are a simplistic. Sure, it's not a game that supposed to have graphical pizzazz, but you can immediately tell there's a very low polygon count. Plain textures decorate backgrounds and other park structures, making it look like a landscape made of Legos. But I think the one flaw that hurts the game is the lack of anything to do BUT design roller coasters. Not that I mind designing a ride that'll make people hurl, but you don't get to see how successful the coaster becomes, what repairs need to be made, etc. You just build, meet the requisites and move on.

A network mode is featured in Coaster Works, where you can download roller coaster designs online and test run them yourself. In spite of an excellent and innovative roller coaster editor, Coaster Works really needs to improve it's rather boring visual presentation. Adding some decent extra modes could make a difference if Coaster Works is thrilling Dreamcast ride, or as exciting as a jaunt on the merry-go-round.